OT: Winnipeg ICE sold - Moving to Wenatchee, Washington renamed Wenatchee Wild

[jetsmooseice]

Just reading and thinking about the Benson draft thread over here:

W/C Zachary Benson - (2023, 13th, BUF)

Age : 15 Draft Eligible : 2023 A small, but really skilled forward from Chilliwack, BC. I thought, Yager has his own, why not this kid as well. As has Yager, Benson been great as well, has the same stats what Yager this season 6 goals, 13 points, but in 1 less game what Yager. He was...

forums.hfboards.com

How does Benson stack up in the brief but illustrious history of the Winnipeg ICE? With all due respect to Krebs and Savoie, Benson eclipses them both. The only player at a similar level is Peyton Krebs, who was hindered somewhat by a much worse ICE team when he started in Kootenay and then the achilles injury heading into his draft year.

Krebs was by all accounts a 100% top notch team leader on the ice and off. I'd be curious to know a bit about Benson's intangibles. He's probably the best scorer/playmaker. Is he also the best all around player in team history? Or is that still Krebs? What say you?

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[RetroWinnipeg]

 

[Guardian17]

Winnipeg Ice on record roll as Western Hockey League playoffs approach

A remarkable regular season for the Winnipeg Ice will wrap up this week, with the team having already set a WHL record for wins.

winnipegsun.com

 

[snowkiddin]

Anyone know when the all-access WHL playoffs streaming/TV passes go on sale? I’d like to pick one up again this year

 

[RetroWinnipeg]

Anyone know when the all-access WHL playoffs streaming/TV passes go on sale? I’d like to pick one up again this year

Just as a reminder from last year, league championship rounds were aired on TSN.

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[RetroWinnipeg]

Game 1 conflicts with Jets vs. Red Wings.
Game 5 is a home double header. Head downtown for Jets vs. Predators at 6.

 

[Guardian17]

Winnipeg Ice to begin WHL championship quest against Medicine Hat Tigers

The regular-season champion Winnipeg Ice will face the Medicine Hat Tigers in the first round of the WHL playoffs, starting Friday. Read on.

winnipegsun.com

 

[Guardian17]

With last year's lessons learned, Ice begin WHL playoffs focused on ultimate goal

Matthew Savoie had a lot of time to think about what could have been for last season’s Winnipeg Ice team.

winnipegsun.com

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Jets4Life]

I don't want to get your hopes up, but if anyone has been following the OOT scoreboard, Connor Bedard has been on fire, and the #6 ranked Pats beat the #3 ranked Saskatoon Blades easily. If Regina upsets Saskatoon, Bedard will be playing Winnipeg next round (ther eis zero chance #7 Calgary goes through).

Tickets will be in very high demand.

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[Mooche]

Ice doing Ice things and taking care of business handily on the road in Medicine Hat.

Still no Benson from what I can tell which is just downright scary.

Was nice to see the Blades end up taking a game in OT against the Pats last night. I would love to attend one more viewing of the Bedard Show at Max Bell, selfishly, but I am also hoping the Blades can pick up another few wins to really drag that series out.

The more rest the better obviously for our Ice --- especially for a player like Benson who is going to be well-rested and ready to rock for the later rounds.

 

[snowkiddin]

Ice doing Ice things and taking care of business handily on the road in Medicine Hat.

Still no Benson from what I can tell which is just downright scary.

Was nice to see the Blades end up taking a game in OT against the Pats last night. I would love to attend one more viewing of the Bedard Show at Max Bell, selfishly, but I am also hoping the Blades can pick up another few wins to really drag that series out.

The more rest the better obviously for our Ice --- especially for a player like Benson who is going to be well-rested and ready to rock for the later rounds.

Good game by the ICE tonight to complete the sweep. Never trailed once the whole series; the boys appear to be on their games.

Now, hopefully Saskatoon and Regina go seven games so it gives Benson and Lattimer more time to recover.

Go ICE Go!

 

[Guardian17]

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

Western Hockey League

whl.ca

 

[jetsmooseice]

What are the odds on a Ostapchuk one game suspension after the first period misconduct he got? I don't think it's worthy of a suspension, it was hardly a vicious hit, it looked like one of those situations where the outcome was penalized more so than the initial action.

MH played with a lot of energy last night, they certainly didn't lie down for game 4. They are looking like a team on the rise. But the outcome never really felt in doubt despite the narrow margin.

I'm looking forward to round 2, it will be interesting to see who the opponent ends up being.

 

[tbcwpg]

What are the odds on a Ostapchuk one game suspension after the first period misconduct he got? I don't think it's worthy of a suspension, it was hardly a vicious hit, it looked like one of those situations where the outcome was penalized more so than the initial action.

MH played with a lot of energy last night, they certainly didn't lie down for game 4. They are looking like a team on the rise. But the outcome never really felt in doubt despite the narrow margin.

I'm looking forward to round 2, it will be interesting to see who the opponent ends up being.

There will be a huge rush if it's the Pats. The Hitmen are down 3-1 so it'll come down to whether Regina can close out the Blades. Otherwise it would be Moose Jaw, who swept Lethbridge.

 

[jetsmooseice]

There will be a huge rush if it's the Pats. The Hitmen are down 3-1 so it'll come down to whether Regina can close out the Blades. Otherwise it would be Moose Jaw, who swept Lethbridge.

Moose Jaw is a tough team, they have given the ICE all they can handle on a few occasions this past season. That would be a battle of a series. The Pats have been pretty hot lately, but I still prefer the ICE's chances against Regina. So, go Pats go???

Also, I wonder if the 50 Below guys are giving any thought to renting out CLC for a round if the ICE end up taking on the Pats? As sad as it is to say given how good and how entertaining the ICE are, if there is one WHLer who could draw a big crowd there, it's Bedard. I don't necessarily think there would be a ticket buying frenzy, but I could see the ICE selling more than 5 or 6 thousand tickets for games against Regina. From a business standpoint, it might be worth paying the going rate of whatever TNSE is charging although personally I'd prefer that they stay at Wayne Fleming.

 

[tbcwpg]

Moose Jaw is a tough team, they have given the ICE all they can handle on a few occasions this past season. That would be a battle of a series. The Pats have been pretty hot lately, but I still prefer the ICE's chances against Regina. So, go Pats go???

Also, I wonder if the 50 Below guys are giving any thought to renting out CLC for a round if the ICE end up taking on the Pats? As sad as it is to say given how good and how entertaining the ICE are, if there is one WHLer who could draw a big crowd there, it's Bedard. I don't necessarily think there would be a ticket buying frenzy, but I could see the ICE selling more than 5 or 6 thousand tickets for games against Regina. From a business standpoint, it might be worth paying the going rate of whatever TNSE is charging although personally I'd prefer that they stay at Wayne Fleming.

There is a history of WHL games at CLC, I believe Brandon played there for either playoffs or late season games.

 

[jetsmooseice]

There is a history of WHL games at CLC, I believe Brandon played there for either playoffs or late season games.

Yeah, they played there a few times in the past when the Royal Manitoba Fair would take over the Keystone. They also used arenas in smaller towns like Dauphin.

I suspect there is not as much bad blood between TNSE and 50 Below as some might believe. It's possible that there may not be any at all. If you look at the hockey/business ops people with the ICE and their backgrounds, there are some strong connections. Considering that both 50 Below and TNSE could stand to gain from 2 or 3 large crowds for ICE/Pats games at CLC, I think there is potential that a deal could be worked out. Might be a nice way for 50 Below to test drive that location too...